Chapter 7
For three consecutive days, Shen Cong encountered three "survivors" who have somehow managed to survive in this post-apocalyptic world.
However, these so-called survivors turned out to be mutant creatures—a ground worm, a tooth wolf, and a giant rat. It seemed that their survival was also linked to the activity brought about by the meteor shower, just like Shen Cong's own transformation.
"Is this the world after doomsday or a new world altogether?" Shen Cong questioned aloud, but there was no answer. He could only adapt to this new reality gradually.
The fang dagger's ability to slice through the teeth of the giant rat gave Shen Cong a lot of inspiration. He realized that the use of activity was more versatile than he had originally thought, extending beyond his previous speculation of extending, alloy, and replacement functions.
Taking the fang dagger as an example, when infused with activity, it underwent an immediate qualitative change. Shen Cong experimented with injecting activity into the dagger and discovered that it could function as an ordinary knife.
Inspired by this, he named this ability the "fourth ability" of sharpening and activity.
Moreover, Shen Cong noticed that only certain items could be infused with active sharpening, such as the fangs from the tooth wolves, the cheek limbs of the ground worms, and the front teeth of the giant rat which served as the active cores.
This prompted Shen Cong to question the existence of an active core within King Kong. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't discern the most active part of the vehicle. He wondered if inanimate objects had active cores.
"Maybe my inference was wrong," Shen Cong mused, realizing that without sufficient information, he would have to set aside his hypothesis for the time being.
With his arm on the mend, Shen Cong decided to stay at the Carrefour supermarket for a few more days. With one hand, he constructed a mousetrap using ground worm meat as bait and placed it inside the supermarket. His plan was to capture any giant rats, if they were present.
As for why he used ground worm meat, it was because he found the taste of the three mutant creatures—the tooth wolf, giant rat, and ground worm—ranged from highest to lowest in quality. Shen Cong had stopped consuming ground worm meat as it did not meet his expectations.
He remained patient as he waited for the giant rat to be lured in. However, on the first day, there was no activity. The following day was just as uneventful. Even on the third day, after roasting the ground worm meat and setting the mousetrap, there was no movement. Shen Cong also gathered more drinks, tobacco, and alcohol, but still no sign of the giant rat. It appeared that there was indeed only a single mutant creature.
Yet, on the fourth day, Shen Cong noticed that the mousetrap had sprung. All that remained were a few broken steel bars and distinct tooth marks.
This revelation sent chills down Shen Cong's spine. Steel had always seemed like an impenetrable barrier against monsters, but now he realized that there might be creatures capable of breaking through it.
Thankfully, King Kong's reinforced steel armor provided him with the greatest sense of security.
Feeling a sense of urgency, Shen Cong discarded half of the mousetrap and immediately drove until he reached the waterworks. Safety became his top priority.
When he arrived, he found it challenging to connect the scattered rocks to the original waterworks. There used to be a reservoir adjacent to the waterworks, but its waves and light had long disappeared. All that remained were rocks and yellow sand.
"It should be around this area. Let's dig and see if we can find the location of the underground warehouse," Shen Cong concluded.
Digging proved to be a tiresome task, making Shen Cong mindful of his limited diesel supply. Diesel fuel was a strategic resource, more precious than gold, now that there was no new energy to replace it.
After an hour and a half of rigorous work, Shen Cong finally excavated the entrance to the underground warehouse.
However, he didn't rush inside. The encounter at the Carrefour supermarket had left a lasting impact on him.
Taking out a remote-controlled toy car fitted with a camera, Shen Cong sent it into the underground warehouse to survey the area. The camera transmitted the footage, revealing a large compartment divided into sections. In the first compartment, he noticed some black stains resembling dried blood.
"Blood stains?" Shen Cong questioned, unsure if they were recent or from two months earlier—before the storm had subsided.
Unable to determine their origin, Shen Cong proceeded with caution. He opened the door to the second compartment, only to be overwhelmed by a putrid stench. It was filled with the disarrayed bodies of a dozen humans, along with the decaying remains of several unidentified monsters.
The grotesque scene nearly made Shen Cong retch, but he managed to restrain himself and accept the reality before him. After all, the dead posed no immediate threat to him. "So, there must be many survivors in big cities or military bases!" Shen Cong thought.
Large cities have many basements, including many supermarkets located in such areas. They have an abundance of supplies and plenty of refuge spots to avoid the doomsday storm. Military bases likely have similar secure spaces. While Shen Cong managed to survive within King Kong, those who hid underground likely had an easier time, especially with plenty of food and drink readily available.
"Survivors..."
Shen Cong's eyes were filled with a complex mix of emotions as he proceeded towards the third compartment. The marks of human habitation were evident in the room; traces of food, quilts, and other personal items. From the looks of it, these people managed to survive the storm but tragically encountered these mutant monsters afterward.
"This seems to have happened before the storm stopped..."
Shen Cong moved silently through the third compartment to the fourth one, which was filled with barrels of water. He planned to transport ten barrels of water, expecting to utilize two for bathing. It had been almost two months since Shen Cong had a proper shower; he'd been merely wiping his body with a wet towel.
While bathing, Shen Cong caught himself feeling particularly thoughtful as he was unsure how to handle potential encounters with other surviving humans. Living alone wasn't a long-term solution, but his reclusive nature before the end of the world made him reluctant to mingle with others. To him, survivors and mutant monsters held somewhat equal weight in his eyes, with the only advantage being that humans could provide exchangeable materials. However, human nature was unpredictable, and being around others felt riskier than being around monsters. Throughout various movie and novel depictions, incidents of "man-eating-man" were all too common.
As a paranoid individual feeling persecuted by the world, Shen Cong only trusted himself, preferring to face the world alone.
While wearing the active armor, he was struck with a sudden brainstorm—could he extend the duration of the active armor if he embedded an active core within it and used his own activity as a guide? He put his idea into action, working on the active armor for two days.
Two days later, the product—a set of rough steel plates complete with two cavities, named Optima 1.0 active armor—was finally finished. Although it was an eyesore and looked even shabbier than the original Iron Man suit, it filled Shen Cong with a strong sense of security.
It was the reinforcement of active steel, which made the armor even more robust compared to pure steel armor. Shen Cong noticed that during the armor's inactive phase, the active core loss rate seemed to be slowed down significantly.
This indicated that the active steel armor could be effectively utilized for a longer period—perhaps up to three hours—than what he initially anticipated.
Clad in his active steel armor, equipped with his high-fidelity VI that was also enhanced with activity, and armed with his fanged daggers and a crossbow, Shen Cong advanced deeper into the warehouse. The infrared camera installed in the left area of his eye detected no substantial heat signatures, suggesting the area was clear of any threats.
Carefully making his way around the first compartment, Shen Cong couldn't help but feel intrigued when he encountered the very black marks which the remote-controlled toy car had initially discovered. Upon closer inspection, the black spots appeared to look like dried blood stains.
"Could these be bloodstains?" Shen Cong muttered to himself, unable to determine if the stains were fresh or were remnants from the unsheltered days prior to the last day.
Despite the uncertainty, he decided to proceed cautiously. Upon reaching the second compartment, he was hit by an overwhelming stench of decay. The room was filled with disassembled corpses of a dozen humans, along with the gruesome and rotting remains of various unknown mutant creatures.
The horrific sight almost made Shen Cong retch. However, after a while, he managed to collect himself as he rationalized that nothing was more harmless than death itself.
Seeing the scene, Shen Cong pondered, "This could well be the result of an encounter between a survivor and a mutant creature. Judging by the state of decay, it must have occurred at least a month ago. Did this incident happen before the storms ceased?"
Examining the bodies for a while, Shen Cong decided to proceed to the third compartment, not without putting on his nose plug first, though. Upon getting there, he discovered evidence of human habitation - food remains, quilts, toilet facilities, and other personal items strewn around. It seemed clear that these survivors managed to weather the initial storm but tragically ended up encountering the deadly mutants afterward.
"This suggests there might be numerous survivors in large cities or military bases!" Shen Cong deduced.
Shen Cong mused as he trudged silently into the third compartment before making his way to the fourth one, which was packed with water barrels. Shen Cong decided to transport ten of these barrels, planning to use two of them to bathe. It had already been two months since he had a decent shower, and he badly wanted to freshen up.
However, thoughts kept flooding his mind during his bath. He began to wonder how he should interact with other survivors when he inevitably comes across one. Being alone was not a sustainable lifestyle, yet he had been a reclusive person even before the apocalypse, making him somewhat apprehensive about social interactions. In his view, survivors and mutant creatures held the same weight in his eyes, as they posed different forms of risks. The only benefit with human survivors was that they could provide material goods for exchange. But the unpredictability of human nature made being around people potentially more dangerous than dealing with monsters.
Acclimating to a full suit of active armor, he was struck with an intriguing idea—if he could insert the active core into the active armor and guide it using his own activity, he could effectively extend the operating time of the active armor. He currently had fourteen tooth wolf fangs, a pair of ground worm cheek limbs, and giant rat front teeth at his disposal—ample supplies to test his hypothesis.
As someone highly skilled in DIY, making an active armor suit was a straightforward task, and now that he possessed the strength of a bull, he was able to easily bear the armor's weight.
A couple of days later, a rough suit of armor, christened "Optima 1.0 active armor", coupled with two cavities was complete. Its aesthetics left much to be desired, looking cruder than the original Iron Man suit. However, to Shen Cong, it was a testament of enhanced security.
And interestingly, he discovered that the armor's activity seemed to have a unique reaction with the decay of the tooth. The rate of decay of the active armor's activity was significantly slower than he had originally anticipated. Now, the armor could be worn for up to three hours.
Feeling safer and more confident, Shen Cong, clad in his Optima 1.0 active armor and armed with his high-fidelity VI, two fanged daggers, and a crossbow, ventured deeper into the warehouse. The echoing sound of his metallic footsteps was the only noise accompanying him in the otherwise silent surroundings.
In the fourth compartment, Shen Cong was relieved to find barrels of water. He planned to transport ten barrels back to his base, setting two aside for bathing. But it was more than having a decent bath that swamped his mind. In the midst of his solitude, thoughts about interacting with other people someday seemed unavoidable.
Despite his initial anticipation, being in the presence of survivors turned out to be less inviting than he had imagined. Shen Cong preferred the predictable threats of mutants over the unpredictability and potential backstabbing often found among desolate survivors. Having a deep fear of being deceived or let down by others, Shen Cong was more comfortable battling dangerous creatures than potentially dangerous humans.
Baffled with the overwhelming thoughts about dealing with other survivors, Shen Cong continued to feel troubled but he decided to set those troubles aside for now.